The Infinite Atonement

The Infinite Atonement by Tad R. Callister. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2000. 356 pp., $24.95.

This has been on my to-read list for quite some time. The author was my wife's mission president in Toronto, Canada from 2005-2007, and his legal background and extensive knowledge of early Christianity and the scriptures has strongly influenced her (and my) doctrinal perspective. And I am always interested in new works that try to tackle one of the most challenging and important doctrines of Mormonism. I was rather disappointed, however, in this book. Effusive adjectives and extensive quotations from classic works of literature do not suffice in a doctrinal discussion. While the tenor of the work invites the reader to ponder personally on the Atonement, it does not in or of itself provide new insights. As a summary manual to guide one's own study and contemplation, the book does well; perhaps then, I simply expected too much in my hope that the book would orient Jesus Christ in Mormon theology and anchor the Atonement in everyday mortal life.

The author admittedly established a very high standard for himself the moment he decided on the title, The Infinite Atonement. How does one capture anything infinite in 356 pages, let alone the central doctrinal event for over one billion people living on the earth? Unfortunately, this book is unable to live up to this standard. The heavy focus on adjectives, rhetorical questions, and quotes from Milton and Shakespeare are distracting. While the chapters are well-organized, the overall message is ironically difficult to discern. And I expected a more comprehensive examination of the scriptures for insights into the life and death of Jesus Christ. Instead, Elder Callister quickly inserts multiple scriptural quotations at a time to bolster a central theme in a chapter.

In writing this review, I am not suggesting that the book is doctrinally unsound nor that Callister is a poor writer. Neither are the case. The doctrine is solid, just tepid. The Atonement is an incredibly broad and challenging doctrine that one could argue all scripture should be cited in its support. And the book remains an enjoyable read, is well-edited, and could prove a helpful and unique topical division of the Atonement of Jesus Christ for future Sunday School lessons.

I guess what I am trying to say is: I was hoping for a Talmage-tier work and was thus disappointed. Talmage's Jesus the Christ remains the seminal work on the Atonement. Granted, he wrote nearly 750 pages of very small print and cites nearly every source available to him. But in my mind, that is exactly what is required of any book that purports to provide an overview of Mormon theology (or its central tenants).

Perhaps though, my perspective on these works are merely a reflection of my own spiritual capacity. In writing this book almost as a study manual, Callister compels readers to do much of the work on their own. If it is the Spirit that truly instructs, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians, than any dearth of insights is more the fault of the reader than the author. So perhaps I should revisit this book for new insights once I have undertaken my own comprehensive study of the fall and redemption of mankind. You can never study too much a topic that is infinite in scope, as Elder Callister rightfully points out.